Joy. As we come to the midpoint of Advent, we focus on joy. We light the pink candle, sing joy to the world, and praise God for His “tidings of comfort and joy.”
But what is it that we are really looking for?
Joy feels hard to find.
It feels illusive even. Like it is hiding from us, refusing to be found. Refusing to make itself known.
When we think of joy, we think of sunshine, happiness…. All the warm and fuzzy things.
In Luke 2, the gospel writer is telling us the story of Jesus’ birth. Mary and Joseph have traveled to Bethlehem and Mary gives birth to Jesus while they are there.
Scripture says:
“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!’ “
Luke 2:8-14
Having joy in advent is a balancing act.
In one hand we hold the joy, excitement, and relief we feel at the news of the coming Savior.
In the other hand we hold the sorrow of all we have lost and all we eagerly wait for.
James 1 commands us to “consider it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds”. This joy is only possible when it is anchored in the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ.
As we hold the tension of joy and disappointment, hurt, sadness, confusion… whatever it may be… turn your attention to your body. Take a deep breath… the kind that makes your belly move. Take a moment to notice the sensations you feel in your body as you continue taking those deep breaths.
What do you feel as you think of loss? Disappointment? Despair?
Now notice what you feel when you think about the birth of Christ. What do you feel in your body? There is no right or wrong answer to either of these questions… it is not good, bad, right, or wrong. It just is.
Can you feel them both at the same time?
Both are present.
Both deserve to be acknowledged.
But here is the good news: pain will end and joy lasts. Pain will end and joy lasts!
In Psalm 16 the Psalmist declares that his heart is glad and his whole being rejoices because the Lord is with Him! “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (vs. 11)
Matthew 1:21-23 says:
“She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. And all this took place to fulfill what the Lord has spoken by the prophet: behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us).”
We have joy in advent because God Himself came to earth and dwelt among us. When we are in His presence we have the fullness of joy. That is why the coming of Jesus was good news of great joy to all people–all people could now encounter the fullness of Joy through the presence of Jesus.
Take a deep breath. Invite God to be with you in this moment. Notice His presence around you. And just be there. Be fully present in this moment with Jesus– your Immanuel.
As we walk through sorrow, we have joy within our souls because the spirit of God dwells with us, and one day we will be in perfect union with Him. Until then, we live in the tension. We press on to know Him and experience Him on this side of eternity. We fight to hold on to the joy.
When it seems hard to find the joy, we can rest assured in the promise that His presence brings the purest form of joy. And that He is always with us. He has promised to always be with us.
As we reflect on Joy in advent… in the waiting, close your eyes and picture that physical sensation of joy. [Maybe you feel your shoulders relax, your body feels a little more settled… maybe your chest feels relaxed… maybe your cheeks feel warm.] Now imagine Jesus sitting next to you. Notice what changes about that sensation of joy. Rest in Him. Your joy is secure in His presence.
To close, I want to share part of a liturgy for you:
Let us not deny sadness, but transform it into fertile soil for more joy. Let us not deny the darkness, but choose to live in the light. Cynics seek darkness wherever they go, but joy is the mark of the people of God. Help us discipline ourselves to choose joy for the reward is joy itself. Help us renew our minds until they default to joy and not fear, for there is so much to frighten us. Help us believe that the Light can be trusted, for there is so much darkness to mislead us. Jesus, you are both the Man of Sorrows and the Man of Complete Joy, help us to hold both sorrow and joy in the ways you’ve shown us. Help us to remain in your love so that your joy may be in us and our joy may be complete.
For a FREE printable (and audio!) versions of this reading and all five of the Advent readings written and recorded by the counselors at Full Life, including bonus reflective questions after each reading, visit –> https://fulllifecc.com/advent-readings-the-collection/.
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